Blogger Michael DeGusta sparked a minor uproar in the electric vehicle community this week when he posted about the “devastating design flaw” that he said left many Tesla cars “bricked:” their batteries depleted, unable to move, with the only repair being a new $40,000 battery.

Tesla responded today with a long blog post that tried to answer Mr. DeGusta’s accusations point by point. “If ever the battery in your Tesla runs low, the car is designed to let you know with repeated visual and audible warnings…. Starting with Roadster 2.0, owners can also elect for their car to contact Tesla headquarters once the state of charge falls below a specified level, and we can then contact the owner.”

Mr. DeGusta has his own spin on what Tesla describes as their exemplary service. “In at least ...

Flow-battery startup EnerVault announced a $15 million round of funding Thursday, which will help the company move forward with its first energy storage system installation. Flow batteries aren’t well know, but they can be powerful energy storage devices. Instead of the typical lithium-ion battery, which powers most of the devices we use daily such as cell phones and laptops, flow batteries are cheaper and can storage large amounts of energy generated by solar panels and wind energy. The technology behind them can be a bit complicated to understand if you don’t have a science degree, but essentially flow batteries generate electricity from electrolyte liquid flowing through a fuel cell. The liquid is stored in two external tanks next to the cell, and can be replaced when needed. EnerVault has been developing large-scale redox flow batteries to power big buildings ...

Albertans are passionate about balancing the development of this province’s rich resources with environmental stewardship. The Emerald Awards recognize and reward the excellent environmental initiatives undertaken each year by large and small corporations, individuals, not-for-profit associations, community groups and governments.

You can submit your nominations BEFORE Feb. 24th, 2012 by visiting http://emeraldfoundation.ca/emerald-awards/nominations/

Each year the Foundation receives nominations in ten established categories. Nominations open in November and close at the end of February.
A panel of knowledgeable judges, with cross-sectoral experience, carry out an independent evaluation based on criteria outlined in the nominations package and select the finalists and recipients.

In June each year, about 500 guests gather in Edmonton or Calgary to celebrate environmental excellence in Alberta and provide recognition to those individuals and organizations whose commitment to our environment truly demonstrates leadership. Because of their ingenuity, dedication and hard work, …

Electric car maker Tesla unveiled its latest electric vehicle last night, the Model X, a cross-over that offers more space than the company’s Model S sedan and original sporty Roadster. For those waiting for a semi-affordable electric car that offers plenty of space, power, and versatility, the Model X looks to be the best option yet. Like other cross-over vehicles, the Model X sits somewhere between a sedan and a SUV. But Tesla couldn’t help but add its own spin to the form: the Model X features funky rear doors, dubbed “Falcon Wings,” that flip up and allow you to easily step into the car. Tesla CEO Elon Musk says that the Falcon Wings are the largest rear door openings found in a passenger car, CNet reports. Tesla expects the Model X to retail close to the Model S’ ...

In a report published by Scientific Reports, researchers say they’re successfully working toward making low-cost solar cells from plants. While, technically, all plants are some sort of solar cell (photosynthesis takes sunlight, water, and CO2 and turns it into sugar, as you may remember from high school chemistry), the key here is the word “low cost.” Photosynthesis On Your Roof The project in question is focusing on a way to produce “biophotovoltaics” without all sorts of sophisticated lab equipment. And while esoteric and possibly arcane lab equipment is all sorts of cool, it’s also rather expensive and not always workable for mass-producing items. The new system is incredibly user-friendly and costs a lot less – mix green plants (like grass clippings) with custom-designed chemicals, and out comes a photovoltaic material made with the power of photosynthesis. MIT researcher Andreas Mershin, ...

Stuffed into the envelope with the electricity bill is sometimes a little pamphlet telling you where that energy comes from. Sometimes, it’s pretty detailed; other times, not so much. But the percentage of energy coming from renewable sources often isn’t that high, and part of the reason for that is that renewable energy is generated in bursts and is then hard to store. Energy storage on a large scale would help even out the intermittent nature of renewable energy; in fact, techniques such as batteries and fuel cells are used on smaller scales right now to manage grids with high percentages of renewable sources. The problem with wide-scale use is that energy storage systems are not cheap. The Falling Cost of Technology While energy storage tech is expensive now, any consumer will note that the price of technology (whether that’s computers, ...

  Solar grid parity, when installing solar power will cost less than buying electricity from the grid, is considered the tipping point for solar power.  It’s also a tipping point in the electricity system, when millions of Americans can choose energy production and self-reliance over dependence on their electric utility. But this simple concept conceals a great deal of complexity.  And given the stakes of solar grid parity, it’s worth exploring the details. The Cost of Solar For starters, what’s the right metric for the cost of solar?  The installed cost for residential solar ($6.40 in 2011), or commercial solar ($5.20), or utility-scale solar ($3.75)?  Even if we pick one of these, it’s difficult to compare apples to apples, because grid electricity is priced in dollars per kilowatt-hour of electricity, not dollars per Watt. Enter “levelized cost,” or the cost of a ...

Flagship Ventures, a VC firm focusing on technologies for healthcare and sustainability, has closed its 2011 fundraising efforts with $270 million in the bank. The new Flagship Ventures Fund IV L.P. was set at $250 million, but investors exceeded that amount. Investors included all types of organizations from foundations to corporations to individuals, including a few new limited partners that had not contributed to previous funds. Flagship’s portfolio companies seem to be tackling big, human-scale problems from energy to epidemics, and the firm has seen exits that match that ambition. Some of its more notable exits include Adnexus Therapeutics, which was sold for $430 million to Bristol-Myers Squibb; Morphotek, which was acquired for $325 million by Japanese big pharma company Eisai; and Hypnion, which was bought by Lilly for an undisclosed sum. “We are quite pleased by the market’s reaction to our ...

  Most of you reading this are already inclined toward green-type technology, whether that’s clean power generation, electric transportation, or more efficient ways to do things. Today, I’m going to give you one more reason to stop supporting – or at least vocally dislike – big gas and big oil. Yes, We’ve All Heard About This There are a number of people who will happily speak at length about dependence on foreign oil and how it leads to American troops being sent over to oil-rich hotspots to make sure we can still get affordable gas at the pump. There was a pun a while back about how Operation: Iraqi Freedom should have been called Operation: Iraqi Liberation (or O.I.L.), for example. I’m not really one of those people, but I listen when they talk. Oil is not cheap; from the ...

 

Research into solar power is proceeding on several fronts; one of them is 3-dimensional solar technology rather than the flat solar cells that are currently prevalent. Solar3D, Inc. is the developer of that 3-dimensional solar technology. This week, they announced that simulated tests of its new solar cell design predict conversion efficiency to exceed 25%.

If the new solar cells work as expected, they would have one of – if not the – highest rates of conversion efficiency in the industry. Jim Nelson, President and CEO of Solar3D, waxed enthusiastic in an interview with Business Wire:

“We are very encouraged by these test results. We are now evaluating various methods of fabricating a prototype. If the results of our tests hold up in fabrication, as we expect, then our product’s performance will be among the very highest ...